And then A, he is our good shepherd, giving us proper care. And B, he is our master, will prepare us for the work of the ministry. And C, he will break old habits and redirect us. So A, he is a good shepherd giving us proper care. B, our master will prepare us for the work of the ministry. C, he will break our old habits and redirect us. Now Roman numeral two, we have been created by God to achieve great things for him. we have been created by God to achieve great things for him. A, for this to happen, we cannot place ourselves in the wrong hands. For this to happen, we cannot place ourselves in the wrong hands. B, we must be brought under the management of the master. we must be brought under the management of the master. See, there is no such thing as absolute freedom. There is no such thing as absolute freedom. And then Roman numeral three, Some who try to serve in the work of the Lord or in the work of the ministry do so in the wrong hands. Some who try to serve the work of the ministry do so in the wrong hands. A, this destroys the purpose of God. B, this brings spiritual failure. And C, this does harm to the ministry. I think you have the conclusion in your outlines. So we'll go to lesson number nine now. Or number 10, excuse me, number 10. In the Psalms chapter 63, verse 8 says, my soul followeth hard after thee, thy right hand upholdeth me. And then in Matthew's gospel, we will read from chapter 16, And verse 10, 16, verse 10. Huh? Oh yes, verse 24, excuse me. Then said Jesus unto his disciples, if any man will come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. So those verses have to do with unconditional surrender. We do not surrender to God making any conditions. We have to do it unconditionally. Under introduction in this lesson, we study three Very important areas of surrender that must take place in the life of each person doing the work of the ministry. We'll study three very important areas of surrender that must take place in the life of each person doing the work of the ministry. These are the three. A, follow without question. B, learn to trust completely. And C, love to obey. Three very important statements that we'll develop here. Roman numeral one, follow without question. The verses that I read you point that out. A, ministry not designed so that we can use it for foolish reasons. Our ministry is not designed so that we can use it for foolish reasons. B, ministry is a work of faith. Ministry is a work of faith. God will not show you the whole picture in advance. God will not show you the whole picture in advance. You gotta go by faith, because he's not gonna show you the whole program all at one time. C, we must follow by faith without question. We can't question his design. We must follow by faith without question. Then our Roman numeral two is learning to trust. Learning to trust. Proverbs chapter three, verse five and six. Trust in the Lord with all thine heart and lean not to thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him and he will direct thy paths. So here you see that we are to learn to trust God, to follow him. A under Roman numeral two, God cannot only trust, God can only trust those who trust him. God will only trust those who trust him. B, we tell the people to trust the Lord. We must be the example. B, we tell the people to trust the Lord. We must be the example. C, if I preach that others must trust the Lord to nourish and refresh them, I must trust Him to do the same thing for me. I cannot speak to people about trusting the Lord if they don't see me trusting the Lord. If I preach that others must trust the Lord to nourish and refresh them, I must trust Him to do the same thing for me. The third thing that we are to do is to love to obey. That's a difficult thing sometimes, to obey. Not only to obey without question, but to love to obey the Lord. When I was a boy, I didn't always love to obey everything my parents had to say, but I learned that what they were saying was good for me. So I obeyed God, I obeyed my parents. A, we must not lose sight of the one who serves. It is our Lord who serves, so we should love to obey because of who is serving us. We must love, we must not lose sight of the one who serves. Let our work not be only a duty or occupation that becomes so dull to us that we come to dislike it. Let our work not be only a duty or occupation, but that becomes so dull to us that we come to dislike it. I can honestly say that for 71 years I have loved doing what God has called me to do. There's been never a time when I began to dislike the work of the ministry. And there are men who started out with me who have no longer continued in the work of the Lord because for some reason they allowed it to become dull and they began to unlike it, not like it, and so they quit and they started doing something else. I've never found that to be true. I love serving the Lord. See, total surrender involves finding pleasure in pleasing the Lord. Total surrender involves finding pleasure in pleasing the Lord. That should bring us great pleasure, to please the Lord with what we do. And then there is a note here, the work of the ministry must be a loving devotion to him. When you think of it that way, it brings you great pleasure. The work of the Lord must be a loving devotion to Him. You're not just serving your preacher, you're not just serving your church, you're not just serving to be seen of people, you're serving to please God Almighty. And that's what's very important, keep your eyes on Him. And then conclusion, test your devotion and surrender to God. Here's the test you need to give it. A, is it unconditional? Are you serving God without issuing any conditions? Is it unconditional? A. B, do you obey without question? Why do I have to do this? That's not to be done. in the work of the Lord. Trust without fear and love to be obedient. Trust without fear and love to be obedient. That's all part of B. I've noticed missionaries that I go to work with and I've thought to myself, what a horrible place this is where they're serving the Lord. what terrible conditions are here. But they, I looked at them and they never feel that way. They're happy to be placed wherever God wanted them. Unconditional surrender. And see the work of the ministry is done by a surrendered person. And when you're totally surrendered to God, you don't complain. No complaints. Well, where God puts you. All right, we can go to lesson number 11 now. Available for anything. Sometimes people take a job in the world and they have all kinds of demands, things that they want. And when you serve the Lord, you're not on a pension. You just trust God to take care of you. You don't have a retirement program until you die. That's in heaven. God has it all worked out. So we are available, we should be available for absolutely anything God wants us to do in his work. And 2 Corinthians 11, 23 through 28 is a good passage to read in that regard. Under introduction, A, in the work of the ministry, you don't choose the duty you want. In the work of the ministry, you don't choose the duty you want. B, one must answer God's call. With full understanding, you will be available for anything. One must answer God's call with full understanding, you will be available for anything he wants. C, that means anything, anywhere, anytime. You're on duty 24 hours a day as a Christian. And you have to serve him and do anything, anywhere, anytime. I, told Lucy, my wife, that preachers, where we go in different countries, will ask us to do things the last minute. That's kind of their habit. Will you preach on this subject? Will you bring this message? You have to be prepared, always prepared, to preach what preachers need you to preach in their church. They actually know better what the people need than I do, because I come in as a stranger to your congregation. But the preacher knows, and when I send him, for instance, the list of my courses, he chooses the best for his congregation for me to teach. So I have to be ready for anything. Roman numeral one. This means the matter of suffering will not keep me from duty. I must overcome. I must be an overcomer. A under Roman numeral one, any temptation to shirk back from suffering. I must be an overcomer of that. Any temptation. to shrink back from suffering. Be any temptation to avoid calling on difficult people. Sometimes you have to approach a house and knock on the door and you don't know whether he's gonna yell at you or what he's gonna do. You've heard that he's kinda got a rough temptation, go to him anyway. I have had them slam the door in my face. I've had them tell me to get lost. You know, you have all those experiences, but you try to reach them anyway. Be any temptation to draw back from difficult situations. Oh, that's too hard. I can't do that, Lord. Nothing is too hard for the Lord. and we are to be willing to suffer in order to do our duty, we must be an overcomer. Roman numeral two, the means we will place ourselves with grand abandon into the Lord's service. This means we will place ourselves with glad abandon unto the Lord's service. No matter what it costs, no matter where we have to go, no matter what we have to do, I'm available, Lord. That's the attitude. Even if it means facing the darkest night. B, even if it means facing the most dangerous engagement. C, this does not mean we go looking for danger, but rather that we must do not run when coming face to face with it. This does not mean we go looking for danger, but rather that we do not run when coming face to face with it. If there's danger, God'll take care of it. If God wants us to die doing what he wants us to do, that's our privilege to die for him. In Roman numeral three, Paul was available For anything Jonah was not. He didn't like the people that God had called him to minister to. They were the enemies of Israel. So Jonah decided to run from God. Had quite a trip. He didn't make it. Jonah wished to minister in an area of his choosing. Paul was sensitive to the Spirit's leadership. He went where God wanted him to go. Jonah went where he wanted to go. Paul B. saw all men having a right to the gospel. Jonah did not. Paul saw all men having a right to the gospel. Jonah did not. See, Paul suffered willingly for the Lord, while Jonah had to be taken through the school of suffering to make him willing to be available. Paul suffered willingly for the Lord, While Jonah had to be taken through the school of suffering, he graduated from Whale Institute. Yeah, he got his degree. D, Paul was ready to preach. Jonah was not. Which group are you in? You wanna do God's work or do you wanna try to get out of doing God's work? E, the letter E, Paul was delighted with God saved souls. Jonah resented it. He was unhappy when Jonah, when his, the city that he was to preach in repented Even the animals repented. It's quite a revival meeting. He should have been gloriously happy, thrilled with what was done. But he complained about it. Paul was just the opposite. Showing you the opposites here to find out where you are. You're in one of the two groups every time. Now conclusion, we can truly say, can we truly say, A, I will go where God wants me to go. Can you really say that? I'll go where God wants me to go. B, I will be what God wants me to be. Can you really say that? C, I will do what God wants me to do. Can you really seriously say that? D, I will say what God wants me to say. The answer should be yes, I am available for anything. I am available for anything, Lord. And then watch what God says to you. It'll be amazing. Do we have time for the last lesson? Okay. Okay, this lesson is called Finish the Course. Don't start and be a quitter. We see them all the time. It doesn't make God happy. It's not pleasing to the Lord. I know many friends who have started in the ministry doing something for the Lord, and now they're doing nothing. That's sad. Finish the course. Be a finisher for God. 2 Timothy 4, 7 and Acts 20 and verse 24. Under introduction, A, the rate of ministers leaving the ministry is growing too high. The rate of ministers leaving the ministry is growing too high. I remember when I was studying the United States and the various cities, I was trying to find out how many pastors were in each city. And I came across the Dallas-Fort Worth area. Those cities have actually grown together. Great population there. I cannot remember, but it was astounding how many preachers lived in the Dallas-Fort Worth area that were no longer in the ministry. It shocked me. How many of them were actually living in that place and not in the ministry? So the rate of ministers leaving the ministry is growing too high. B, it is not enough to begin. God wants people who will finish. Finish the course. C, let us learn to finish with joy and satisfaction the work of the ministry. I remember pastoring a church in a Kansas town and right next door to me lived a Methodist preacher. And often he would be out on the porch with his wife swinging on their swing when my wife and I and the children were all leaving to go to church. So one day I asked him, I said, what's your church schedule? Oh, we have church on Sunday morning, nothing else the rest of the week. He said, well, we go Sunday night, we go Wednesday night, we go Tuesday for visitation, we have youth night, we have all kinds of activities. even in the church that I'm associated with now, Southwest Baptist Church of Oklahoma City, our schedule is full for God. Many opportunities for the members to be serving the Lord. Roman numeral one, to finish the course, you must require true faithfulness of yourself. You have to demand faithfulness of yourself, not somebody else demanding it of you. You demand it of yourself. A, we must be quietly steadfast and faithful whenever, wherever the Lord places us, wherever the Lord places. Be quietly steadfast and faithful in going there. B, You may wonder why did God put me here? The answer is a quick way to get off course when you start questioning God. Why did God put me here? He didn't put you there because he just didn't have any other place to send you. He put you there because there was a great need there. So you don't need to question that or you get off course. See, my master simply wants me to be faithful wherever he places me and in his all wise plans and purposes. He places me in his all wise plans and purposes. Wants me to be faithful wherever he places me. And Roman numeral two, to finish the course, will require you to love the Lord, serve, and you serve and love the work he has appointed you to do. Read the chapters John 14, 15, 16, and 17. You'll find that people in the Bible were called to very difficult places. Some of those places had never heard the gospel. I told you yesterday I went to a village in Moldova where there was not one single saved person. A completely lost place. But God provided. Because we were willing to go, he opened up the heart of a former a communist mayor who said, you can meet in my house. We did meet in his house. We had some people get saved in the house. They wanted a church started there. I had a man with me who was intending to start a church in that town. So it came, we thought, well, why are we going there? There's nobody saved, there's no Christians there. Well, when we left, there was Christians there. and there was a purpose for our going. A, under Roman numeral two, the Lord wants me to be his companion, or his champion, his coworker, his friend in helping him tend the flock. That's the first thing we do. We are champions and coworkers and friends helping him to take care of or tend the flock. B, God, the love of Christ, is deliberate decision of his will. The love for Christ is a deliberate decision of the will. A fixed attitude of the heart. If you don't love God, there's something wrong with your heart, with the person who lives inside the body. B, I mean C, it is not normal or natural to love God and love others by a laid down life. It is not normal or natural to love God and love others by a laid down life. That's not natural human instinct. We do the very opposite if we're not careful. The rest of C, we are selfish, self-serving people. Christ sets the example of a laid down life for us to follow. Follow him, you're gonna lay down your life. First John three, verses 16 and 17. Now we come to Roman numeral three. To finish the course requires discipline. Hebrews chapter two, verses six through 11. Today, among churches and preachers, there exists an unbalanced overemphasis on the love of God. B, the tendency has been to teach Christ is so compassionate, so caring, so kind that he does not discipline us for the wrongdoing. That's how we think. See, the impression giving is that anything goes. God will forgive and forget all of it. That's not true. D, we distort the truth concerning the character of Christ. If we teach God, we'll merely wink at a wrong. E, we deceive ourselves If we feel we can sin against the Lord God, we are serving. If we think we can get away with that, we're deceiving ourselves. If it is best for us to exercise discipline on ourselves, keeping the path clean, in that way God will not have to discipline us and there will be no interruptions along our path, our course. Now the conclusion. A, how privileged we are to be part of the work of the ministry. That's not a toil, that's a privilege. It's a privilege to serve God. If you are serving God in any way, you are a privileged person. You ought to thank God for that. B, must walk the course in great faithfulness, when total love for the Lord, with total love for the Lord, and exercise self-discipline. Never quit, never give up. Serve the Lord with all your heart. And never stop serving Him. C, finish the course with honor and please Him who called us to the work of the ministry. So this is the course that God has laid on our hearts that we call to please the Lord. Anybody have any need for me to repeat anything or you have any questions? Yes, sir. Huh? What's he saying? I can't hear. Okay, any other questions? I sure do thank all of you for coming and being a part of this two-day study. I hope that it's been a blessing to you. It's always a blessing to me to be able to give these courses. I have over 80 courses like this that I give around the world. and I made them all through the years and making more. I'm actually making more courses now to keep giving on the foreign field. Okay, pastor. Okay, let's pray together. Dear Heavenly Father, we're so thankful that you let us study your word, that you have given it to us. and that we're not alone in this life. We have the Holy Spirit guiding us, we have your word to guide us, and we're so thankful that we do not have to live the Christian life trying to figure out what to do ourselves. But you have stated it all so clearly in your word and through your teaching and through the guidance of the Holy Spirit. We pray that you will bless this church, bless its pastor, use them for the honor and the glory of the Lord, and we pray that thou will help us to please you in all that we do. In Jesus' name we pray, amen.